I'm wondering how well they would work when a peak is blocking views of the sky.

Also, would the electronics inside a GPS or SPOT/InReach interfere?

Neither of these factors would be an issue for sleeping on top of a 14er since you would have a full view of the sky and you can shut off your GPS; however, I probably wouldn't buy a detector just to sleep on a 14er...

I'm wondering how well they would work when a peak is blocking views of the sky.

IMHO, they suck (that's the blunt way of putting it; "unreliable" might be a better description). As a JV soccer coach at Woodland Park last year, we were required by state law to carry one at games, but we never relied on them to make a call on whether to postpone. I witnessed one detector at a game go from predicting lighting was 24-48 miles away to 0-6 to None in a 30 second span.

Peter Aitchison on the risks of rock climbing and mountaineering: "That's life, isn't it? We think the challenge and satisfaction you get from doing this is worth the risks."

"Respect the mountain. Train hard. Hope you can sneak up when it isn't looking."

"The mind is always worried about consequences, but the heart knows no fear. The heart just does what it wants."

carson_h wrote:Neither of these factors would be an issue for sleeping on top of a 14er since you would have a full view of the sky

Actually sleeping would be the biggest danger then. If you just want to spend the night awake on top of a mountain the storm hazard can be mitigated substantially, I would think. Summertime full moon...would be fun.

Regardless - you know what the Welsh say about people who stay on mountain peaks at night, don't you?

Okay, so as far as I know, if there is absolutely no storms coming in a particular afternoon/night and its just a beautiful, cloudless period of time then its not necessary to worry about lightning, correct? It kinda sounds like some people either assume I'll be sleeping on top of a 14er when there IS a chance of thunderstorms, or there still can be lightning storms even on a cloudless day.

"Men go abroad to wonder at the heights of mountains, at the huge waves of the sea, at the long courses of the rivers, at the vast compass of the ocean, at the circular motions of the stars, and they pass by themselves without even wondering." - Augustine